At the end of 2022, WBJ readers were more pessimistic about the future of the Central Massachusetts economy than they had been at any point in the previous 10 years. The first five months of this year only made them more pessimistic.
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At the end of 2022, WBJ readers were more pessimistic about the future of the Central Massachusetts economy than they had been at any point in the previous 10 years. In WBJ’s annual year-end Economic Forecast Survey of its readers, 37% said the economy would either decline slightly or decline significantly in 2023.
The first five months of this year only made WBJ readers more pessimistic.
Because of the number of large economic events that happened to start 2023 – bank failures, residential real estate hitting a hard stop, the still-looming recession amid a strong labor market in a growing economy – WBJ decided to conduct a Midyear Economic Survey of its readers to update their thoughts about 2023. This time, nearly 50% of the 115 respondents in the May/June survey said the economy would either decline slightly or decline significantly by the end of the year.
Despite these rough overall feelings, readers weren’t all doom and gloom. Nearly 80% said the economy performed at or above their expectations for the year so far. The national bank failures didn’t really impact them or their confidence in the U.S. financial system. The labor market remains strong. The performance of their individual businesses is largely either at or above expectations. Their long-term outlook for the region’s business community remains optimistic, particularly as it relates to new real estate developments, the life sciences industry, and the Worcester Regional Airport.
People weren’t feeling great about the economy heading into 2023, and the events so far this year made them feel worse. Still, long-term optimism abounds.
